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Journal of Desert Research ›› 2022, Vol. 42 ›› Issue (5): 25-35.DOI: 10.7522/j.issn.1000-694X.2022.00008

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Changing provenance of Harbin loess since the Middle Pleistocene: evidence from TIMA automated quantification of minerals

Jinqiu Wang1(), Yuanyun Xie1,2(), Chunguo Kang3, Yunping Chi1,2, Lei Sun1, Peng Wu1, Zhenyu Wei1   

  1. 1.College of Geographic Science /, Harbin Normal University,Harbin 150025,China
    2.Heilongjiang Province Key Laboratory of Geographical Environment Monitoring and Spatial Information Service in Cold Regions, Harbin Normal University,Harbin 150025,China
    3.School of Geography and Tourism,Harbin University,Harbin 150086,China
  • Received:2021-12-22 Revised:2022-02-04 Online:2022-09-20 Published:2022-09-22
  • Contact: Yuanyun Xie

Abstract:

Loess contains abundant paleoclimatic information, and an understanding of its provenance variability is essential for understanding the climate aridification of inland Asia, atmospheric circulation patterns, and the evolution of the Asian monsoon. The large outcrop thickness and stratigraphic continuousness of Harbin Huangshan section, preserve the most complete loess-paleosol sequence in the Songnen Plain. Heavy minerals are widely used in river source-to-sink studies, but are relatively rare in aeolian sediments. Quantitative mineralogical methods are fast in analysis and can obtain a large amount of data in a relatively short time. Therefore, the TIMA (TESCAN Integrated Mineral Analyzer) automated quantitative mineral analysis and chronological tests (OSL, ESR and 14C) were performed on the Harbin loess-paleosol sequences with a view to understanding provenance change on glacial-interglacial time scale. The results showed that the mineral species identified by the TIMA method were higher than conventional method. Despite some differences in the identification results of the two methods, the revealed heavy mineral assemblages are basically the same. The loess-paleosol sequence is characterized by distinctly different variations of pseudobrookite, amphibole, zircon, apatite, rutile, ilmenite, chromite, titanite, pyroxene and heavy mineral characterization indices (e.g., ZTR and GZi) in the 20-63 μm fraction of the upper and lower strata at 15.1 m (~234.2 ka). However, the <20 μm fraction does not exhibit such characteristics, with the exception of pseudobrookite and monazite. Differences in the heavy mineral composition of the upper and lower horizons of the loess-paleosol sequence are indicative of changes in the provenance of the Harbin loess. Below 15.1 m, Harbin loess not only receives the contribution of near-source dust from Songnen Sandy Land, but also has the contribution of dust from distant sources (i.e., Onqin Daga Sandy Land and Horqin Sandy Land). With the intensification of aridification climate, the expansion of the extent of Songnen Sandy Land has led to a decrease in the proportion of distant source contribution and a significant increase in the near source contribution of loess accumulation above 15.1 m. In other words, the expansion of the dust source area of the Songnen Sand Land due to enhanced climatic aridification is the main reason for the provenance change of the Harbin loess.

Key words: Harbin, loess, heavy minerals, TIMA analysis, provenance change, aridification

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